Bankrupt ex-builder Terry Woodall to stand trial accused of failing to disclose $15m Lotto win to his creditors – and wants court costs

A $15m lotto win would make anyone smile – but it’s created a legal nightmare for this bankrupt builder, who’s now facing a trial and five years’ jail.

A bankrupt builder who won $15m playing X Lotto will stand trial accused of keeping those winnings from his creditors – despite prosecution and defence counsel agreeing he did it.

On Tuesday, Terry Woodall asked the Adelaide Magistrates Court to award him a second windfall and order prosecutors to reimburse his legal bills for the past five years.

Lindy Powell KC, for Mr Woodall, said her client had offered to plead guilty to a lesser charge, and prosecutors had accepted that, only for a magistrate to reject the move.

That, she said, led to the lesser change being dropped and the original allegations being listed for trial in the District Court in March next year – leaving her client out of pocket.

“My client was in bankruptcy for a number of years, he won $15m, he was required to disclose that to his trustees and did not – none of that is in dispute,” she said.

“The issue that is now going to trial is whether he intentionally defrauded his creditors, or whether he was ignorant of his obligation to disclose the win.

“Now the entire case has been reanimated except for the lesser charge to which he pleaded guilty, that’s all gone, and that’s why we now want our court costs.”

Mr Woodall, 54, of Keith, was originally charged with concealing property with intent to defraud creditors between June and August 2018.

The court has previously heard he was declared bankrupt in February 2013 with $450,000 in debts, and was ordered to pay $337,000 to his creditors.

It also heard that, after winning the lottery, Mr Woodall offered to clear his debts for $100,000 but creditors wanted $1,000,050 – which he then paid to discharge the bankruptcy.

In November 2021, he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of being a bankrupt who concealed property to the value of $20 or more.

On Tuesday, Ms Powell said that plea should have ended the matter, given her client had repaid all of his debts and associated interest.

Terry Woodall outside court. Picture: Mitch Mott

However she said that, following “an argument at the bar table”, the magistrate hearing the case sent that lesser charge to trial.

Prosecutors, she said, then withdrew the lesser charge and reinstated the original offence, which carries a five-year prison term.

“It was not that my client withdrew his plea, he had his plea cut out from under him,” she said.

Asked, by Magistrate John Wells, if the case could be resolved by “resurrecting” the lesser charge, prosecutors said they would not be adopting that course.

They said accepting the plea had served “a utilitarian purpose” during Covid-19 lockdowns and resultant court delays, but no longer met “prosecutorial policy”.

Mr Wells has reserved his decision on costs.